Teachers of science plan an inquiry-based science program for their students.
Teachers of science guide and facilitate learning.
Teachers of science engage in ongoing assessment of their teaching and of student learning.
Teachers of science design and manage learning environments that provide students with the time, space, and resources needed for learning science.
RI Middle School GSEs Earth and Space Science
ESS2: The earth is part of a solar system, made up of distinctive parts that have temporal and spatial interrelationships.
8- Systems and Energy/ Patterns of Change
Explain temporal or positional relationships between or among the Earth, sun, moon (e.g. night/day, seasons, year, tides) or how gravitational force affects objects in the solar system (e.g. moons, tides, orbits, satellites).
Students demonstrate an understanding of temporal or positional relationships between or among the Earth, sun, and moon by:
a) Using models to describe the relative motion/ position of the Earth, sun and moon.
b) Using a model of the Earth, sun and moon to recreate the phases of the moon.
Performance Standards for Science (Gathered from Grade 6 CCMS- Lynn Arcand)
Science Concepts:The student demonstrates conceptual understanding by using a concept accurately to explain observations and make predictions by representing the concept in multiple ways (through words, diagrams, graphs or charts, as appropriate). Both aspects of understanding -explaining and representing- are required to meet this standard.
Standard 3: Earth and Space Sciences Concepts:
S3c: Understanding of: Earth in the Solar System, such as the predictable motion of planets, moons and other objects in the Solar System including days, years, moon phases and eclipses.
Context for the Lesson:
Today will be a continuation from yesterday's class. Today will concentrate on building confidence and knowledge about the moon's characteristics. The question, "What do we know about the moon?" will be the question of the day. A list of observations, general knowledge and assumptions will be made according to the students, and we will go through and answer these questions throughout the class. Their prior knowledge will be activated from yesterday and more information will be included. The vocabulary associated with the moon phases will be revisited continually. To continue with our lesson on the moon and its phases, the students will make a flip book with all of the phases of a lunar month. When completed, the students will be able to flip through the book and observe how a moon changes over a month period. They will also be able to use their calendar for the lunar month to help them. This lesson will lead into the causes for why the moon's phases change. We will begin discussing the role of the Sun's light reflecting off of the moon to create a moon phase. If we have time, a video will be shown that discusses the relationship between the Sun's light and the Moon's orbit around a revolving Earth. The next two classes will focus on understanding this complex relationship through the use of videos and demonstrations.
Opportunities to Learn:
I have a few short videos that can be shown to illustrate the changing phases of the moon. They are specific in that the moon gets lighter on its right side and then darker on its right side. These will aid the students in producing a flip book of the various phases of the moon.
The students will also be able to use their calendar from the previous class to construct their flip book. Questions should arise when the students are completing their activities. The videos will show how the Sun's light effects the moon phases, and the students will have an idea that there is a connection, yet we have not discussed that aspect just yet. I will encourage the students to ask questions as the class proceeds. When a student has a question, I will write it down on the blackboard for the whole class to see. Revisiting the question, "What do we know about the moon?" should provide answers throughout the class that we can compile next to the questions list. Questions and comprehension of ideas will compose of level 1 and 2 depth of knowledge. Level 3 depth of knowledge would be a task like, "Compose a model that describes why we only see one side of the moon." question like this could possibly be answered when the unit is near completion.
I want to attract the students interest by showing them various video clips on the changing moon phases. These clips could run continuously since they are so short, and could be constant references for the students. I think the visual stimulation will help them comprehend the basics of the progression of moon phases. The activity involving the construction of the flip book will attract students who like to be active in their learning. Good. This could promote learning and aid in retaining the knowledge since it has been proven that active learning is more effective than lecturing. These two differing styles of learning will allow students with varying proficiency levels the opportunity to take advantage of their more effective way of understanding material. Utilizing their calendar from the previous class will also help them through the task.
For this lesson I will need:
Access to the video clips, and a computer/ projector to display them.
Construction paper, scissors, markers, stapler.
Objectives:
Distinguish between assumptions learned through their lives and the facts that really tell the true story. (Done through compiling a list of class wide assumptions and ideas about "properties of the moon".
Utilizing a moon phase flip book to gather knowledge and understanding about the changing moon phases. From this I want the students to explore the concept that the moon becomes lighter and darker on its right side as the lunar cycle progresses.
Understand the connection between the Sun's light and the Moon's phases.
Rewrite for students.
Opening (10-15% of lesson):
"What do we know about the Moon?", could be the first question asked to the class. On the board I will make a list of everything that we have learned about the moon. From here I will ask, "What questions do you have about the Moon?" Next to the first list will be a list of any questions. When discussing things that we know about the moon, we will be activating the prior knowledge of the students. I can incorporate other questions that were posed in previous lessons as well to aid in the activation process.
Engagement (60-70% of lesson):
Other questions that I can pose if nobody will contribute would be:
"How many full moons are there in a year?"
"What is it called when there are 2 full moons in one month?"
"How can the moon be out during the day?"
"What makes a new moon?"
"What makes a full moon?"
"Why is the moon sometimes up in the morning and then in the afternoon?"
"How come we never see the other side of the moon?"
"How long does it take for the moon to orbit the earth?"
I will then introduce the activity and ask the students to follow the procedure from the board:
Cut out 30 equally shaped squares.
Draw the phases of one lunar cycle on each square starting with the new moon, and label the following on the appropriate squares: new moon, full moon, waxing crescent, waxing gibbous, first quarter, last quarter, waning gibbous, waning crescent..
To make sure it is done correctly, ask your self, "Where does the full moon and the quarter moons lie in my squares?"
The distances between the full to new moons should be equidistant from each other, as should the distances between the quarter moons and full moon.
As I monitor their progress, I will show some video clips of the moon phases and will point out the important points in them. They are very short so I can show them on a repeating cycle, which will allow the students to continue working and glance occasionally up at the screen for help.
Closure (20-25% of lesson):
Once the flip books have been constructed, we will then go over our questions and assumptions about the moon and its phases. Once we have established the phase succession of the moon, we can now delve deeper into the reasons why there are phases. This will lead into the next couple of lessons. The final 5 minutes of class will be used to show a section of the Bill Nye episode of moon phases. This will incorporate everything we have talked about so far and go a little further in describing the light aspect connecting the phases of the moon to the sun's light. It serves as a conclusion to today's work and a lead in for tomorrow. So you are interrupting their work? Is it best to cut and then draw or vice versa?
Assessment:
The flip book will be collected and used as a summative assessment based upon the following criteria:
The entire lunar cycle is present in the flip book.
The moon phases are appropriately labeled with the following: new moon, full moon, waxing crescent, waxing gibbous, first quarter, last quarter, waning gibbous, waning crescent.
The phase drawings are accurate.
The questioning in the beginning of the class and at the end will be a way for me to assess the students' knowledge formatively. Their responses early on compared to later on will determine how much knowledge the students have comprehended throughout the lesson.The flip book will be returned to the class tomorrow, graded and corrected with comments.
Title:
Moon phasesGLEs/GSEs:
National Science Education Standards- Teachers of science plan an inquiry-based science program for their students.
- Teachers of science guide and facilitate learning.
- Teachers of science engage in ongoing assessment of their teaching and of student learning.
- Teachers of science design and manage learning environments that provide students with the time, space, and resources needed for learning science.
RI Middle School GSEs Earth and Space ScienceESS2: The earth is part of a solar system, made up of distinctive parts that have temporal and spatial interrelationships.
8- Systems and Energy/ Patterns of Change
Explain temporal or positional relationships between or among the Earth, sun, moon (e.g. night/day, seasons, year, tides) or how gravitational force affects objects in the solar system (e.g. moons, tides, orbits, satellites).
Students demonstrate an understanding of temporal or positional relationships between or among the Earth, sun, and moon by:
a) Using models to describe the relative motion/ position of the Earth, sun and moon.
b) Using a model of the Earth, sun and moon to recreate the phases of the moon.
Performance Standards for Science (Gathered from Grade 6 CCMS- Lynn Arcand)
Science Concepts:The student demonstrates conceptual understanding by using a concept accurately to explain observations and make predictions by representing the concept in multiple ways (through words, diagrams, graphs or charts, as appropriate). Both aspects of understanding -explaining and representing- are required to meet this standard.
Standard 3: Earth and Space Sciences Concepts:
S3c: Understanding of: Earth in the Solar System, such as the predictable motion of planets, moons and other objects in the Solar System including days, years, moon phases and eclipses.
Context for the Lesson:
Today will be a continuation from yesterday's class. Today will concentrate on building confidence and knowledge about the moon's characteristics. The question, "What do we know about the moon?" will be the question of the day. A list of observations, general knowledge and assumptions will be made according to the students, and we will go through and answer these questions throughout the class. Their prior knowledge will be activated from yesterday and more information will be included. The vocabulary associated with the moon phases will be revisited continually. To continue with our lesson on the moon and its phases, the students will make a flip book with all of the phases of a lunar month. When completed, the students will be able to flip through the book and observe how a moon changes over a month period. They will also be able to use their calendar for the lunar month to help them. This lesson will lead into the causes for why the moon's phases change. We will begin discussing the role of the Sun's light reflecting off of the moon to create a moon phase. If we have time, a video will be shown that discusses the relationship between the Sun's light and the Moon's orbit around a revolving Earth. The next two classes will focus on understanding this complex relationship through the use of videos and demonstrations.Opportunities to Learn:
I have a few short videos that can be shown to illustrate the changing phases of the moon. They are specific in that the moon gets lighter on its right side and then darker on its right side. These will aid the students in producing a flip book of the various phases of the moon.{{http://www.noao.edu/education/phases/phases_demo.html|Phase demo 1}}
{{http://mistupid.com/astronomy/moonphase.htm|Phase demo 2}}
{{http://www.astro.wisc.edu/~dolan/java/MoonPhase.html| Phase demo 3}}
http://www.sqooltools.com/edvideos/sciencevideos/billnye/moon1.html|Bill Nye video 1
The students will also be able to use their calendar from the previous class to construct their flip book. Questions should arise when the students are completing their activities. The videos will show how the Sun's light effects the moon phases, and the students will have an idea that there is a connection, yet we have not discussed that aspect just yet. I will encourage the students to ask questions as the class proceeds. When a student has a question, I will write it down on the blackboard for the whole class to see. Revisiting the question, "What do we know about the moon?" should provide answers throughout the class that we can compile next to the questions list. Questions and comprehension of ideas will compose of level 1 and 2 depth of knowledge. Level 3 depth of knowledge would be a task like, "Compose a model that describes why we only see one side of the moon." question like this could possibly be answered when the unit is near completion.
I want to attract the students interest by showing them various video clips on the changing moon phases. These clips could run continuously since they are so short, and could be constant references for the students. I think the visual stimulation will help them comprehend the basics of the progression of moon phases. The activity involving the construction of the flip book will attract students who like to be active in their learning. Good. This could promote learning and aid in retaining the knowledge since it has been proven that active learning is more effective than lecturing. These two differing styles of learning will allow students with varying proficiency levels the opportunity to take advantage of their more effective way of understanding material. Utilizing their calendar from the previous class will also help them through the task.
For this lesson I will need:
Objectives:
Rewrite for students.
Opening (10-15% of lesson):
"What do we know about the Moon?", could be the first question asked to the class. On the board I will make a list of everything that we have learned about the moon. From here I will ask, "What questions do you have about the Moon?" Next to the first list will be a list of any questions. When discussing things that we know about the moon, we will be activating the prior knowledge of the students. I can incorporate other questions that were posed in previous lessons as well to aid in the activation process.Engagement (60-70% of lesson):
Other questions that I can pose if nobody will contribute would be:I will then introduce the activity and ask the students to follow the procedure from the board:
- Cut out 30 equally shaped squares.
- Draw the phases of one lunar cycle on each square starting with the new moon, and label the following on the appropriate squares: new moon, full moon, waxing crescent, waxing gibbous, first quarter, last quarter, waning gibbous, waning crescent..
- To make sure it is done correctly, ask your self, "Where does the full moon and the quarter moons lie in my squares?"
- The distances between the full to new moons should be equidistant from each other, as should the distances between the quarter moons and full moon.
As I monitor their progress, I will show some video clips of the moon phases and will point out the important points in them. They are very short so I can show them on a repeating cycle, which will allow the students to continue working and glance occasionally up at the screen for help.Closure (20-25% of lesson):
Once the flip books have been constructed, we will then go over our questions and assumptions about the moon and its phases. Once we have established the phase succession of the moon, we can now delve deeper into the reasons why there are phases. This will lead into the next couple of lessons. The final 5 minutes of class will be used to show a section of the Bill Nye episode of moon phases. This will incorporate everything we have talked about so far and go a little further in describing the light aspect connecting the phases of the moon to the sun's light. It serves as a conclusion to today's work and a lead in for tomorrow. So you are interrupting their work? Is it best to cut and then draw or vice versa?Assessment:
The flip book will be collected and used as a summative assessment based upon the following criteria:- The entire lunar cycle is present in the flip book.
- The moon phases are appropriately labeled with the following: new moon, full moon, waxing crescent, waxing gibbous, first quarter, last quarter, waning gibbous, waning crescent.
- The phase drawings are accurate.
The questioning in the beginning of the class and at the end will be a way for me to assess the students' knowledge formatively. Their responses early on compared to later on will determine how much knowledge the students have comprehended throughout the lesson.The flip book will be returned to the class tomorrow, graded and corrected with comments.